A recent comment by Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson on gay marriage and marrying his dog has stirred up the LGBT community.

Patterson — who said he believes marriage is between one man and one woman — spoke with The Oakland Press March 25 about the Supreme Court’s recent debate on same-sex marriage, commenting, “If the Supreme Court opens the floodgates (allowing same-sex marriage), then I’m going to marry my golden retriever.”

C. J. Cooley of White Lake took offense, sending a letter to The Oakland Press.

“For L. Brooks to make such a statement only helps to spread the misconceptions and hate of what the equal rights to marriage movement is all about,” Cooley wrote. “Sure, he is entitled to his opinion, and if it is based on his upbringing or religious beliefs, then he should not get married to another man, but nor should he force his beliefs onto others.

Advertisement

“No church faith is being told that they must change its doctrines, and the last time that I checked, the ‘church’ is not supposed to be running our government,” Cooley said.

Bill Mullan, Patterson’s spokesman, said he had seen some of the comments and responded. Patterson is away from the county much of this week.

“While the county executive used a bit of sarcasm to make a point about changing a thousands-of-years-old institution, his record speaks louder than words,” said Mullan.

“In 2001, Brooks held a news conference with the Triangle Foundation to call out state legislators who had failed to add sexual orientation to Michigan’s hate crime law.

“In addition, he was a staunch and vocal supporter of Matthew Shepard’s family when they were seeking justice in the beating death of their gay son.”

A Farmington Hills caller, who left an anonymous message on The Oakland Press “Sound Off” recorded line said Patterson, a Republican, isn’t referring to gay marriage by referencing his dog.

“That’s bestiality. My son is gay and could not do anything after his partner died. He had no legal standing and they had wished to get married. I wonder if one of Patterson’s children had come to him and said ‘I’m gay and this is my partner who I love and want to spend the rest of my life with,’ how he would respond. Would he tell them to go marry the dog? He needs to learn to grow up.”

Around the same time Patterson made his comments, a Michigan member of the Republican National Committee, Dave Agema, posted an excerpt from an anti-gay article titled “Everyone Should Know These Statistics On Homosexuals” on his Facebook page.

Among the claims in the article by Dr. Frank Joseph is that gay people “account for half the murders in large cities.” The article, which cites studies from the 1980s for many of its claims, also attributes high medical insurance rates to caring for AIDS patients.

Many who read the post called for Agema’s resignation.

Agema, who served as a state representative from 2007 until December, told The Associated Press he maintains his belief that marriage is between a man and a woman, and said he will “absolutely not” resign.

A group of 21 Michigan Republicans, including local precinct delegates and members of the University of Michigan College Republicans, has called it “deplorable.”

Michigan Republican Party Chairman Bobby Schostak said in a statement that the Republican Party “remains in support of traditional marriage but that never should be allowed nor confused with any form of hate or discrimination toward anyone.”

The Associated Press contributed to this article

Contact Carol Hopkins at 248-745-4645 or carol.hopkins@oakpress.com. Follow her on Twitter @OPCarolHopkins or on Facebook @OPcarolhopkins.